Can someone tell me what Catalyst/MMC to use?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Richard Forester
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Richard Forester

I have an ATI 9800 All In Wonder Pro and use it mostly just as a videocard
but occasionally I watch and record TV. Now that I am addicted to "24" I
am using it more for TV than before. However, with the more recent drivers
there seems to always be a problem.

Catalyst 6.1/6.2 + MMC 9.13 = No actual saved recordings, MMC acts like
it's recording but nothing ends up on the HD. TV seems to work ok but
doesn't work with Gemstar.

Catalyst 6.2 + MMC 9.08 = Seems to be recording ok but watching TV is
"jerky" (slightly slower than it should be and rather annoying).

Catalyst 5.1 + MMC 9.08 = Recording video is out of sych with audio but
watching TV seems ok.

I've always known that ATI drivers suck but this is rediculous! Could
someone tell me a combination that's stable and works correctly with
everything?

Thanks,
Richard
 
Richard Forester said:
I have an ATI 9800 All In Wonder Pro and use it mostly just as a videocard
but occasionally I watch and record TV. Now that I am addicted to "24" I
am using it more for TV than before. However, with the more recent drivers
there seems to always be a problem.

Catalyst 6.1/6.2 + MMC 9.13 = No actual saved recordings, MMC acts like
it's recording but nothing ends up on the HD. TV seems to work ok but
doesn't work with Gemstar.

Catalyst 6.2 + MMC 9.08 = Seems to be recording ok but watching TV is
"jerky" (slightly slower than it should be and rather annoying).

Catalyst 5.1 + MMC 9.08 = Recording video is out of sych with audio but
watching TV seems ok.

I've always known that ATI drivers suck but this is rediculous! Could
someone tell me a combination that's stable and works correctly with
everything?

Thanks,
Richard
Click to expand...

9.13 handles analog captures like DTV has all along. TVoD is put on VCR
files. These are hidden system files that you don't see unless you've
changed your setting so that you can. When you capture, a 1kb VCR file is
created that points to the big VCR files that actually have the content. You
may be able to find your capture by looking at the "Movie" files in Library.
Then they can be exported.
If I only had an AIW I'd use 9.08 unless using Guide+ then drop back to
9.06. Don't use Cats that are older than the version of MMC unless you have
a reason to. I went from 5.5 ,IIRC, to 6.1 so wont speculate on how much
newer you can go.
The jerky and sync issues may mean your system isn't keeping up. Turn off
all unneeded applications and processes and disable modem and LAN cards in
Device Manager at least until you get it figured out. Defrag hard drives
especially with 9.13. Make sure you have the latest BIOS and chipset drivers
for your M/B.
Somewhere around 5.4 the WDM drivers changed from analog sound to digital on
the bus. Depending on how you changed versions and whether you used the
CatUninstaller you may have some version conflicts.
YMMV
 
Thank you for your response and information, it definitely helped!

I ultimately wound up finding a combination of drivers and MMC that seems to
be working just fine (Cat 6.2 and MMC 9.06.1). I now have good picture
watching TV, no synch issues in the recordings and Gemstar still works. I
also tried Cat 6.2 and MMC 9.13 again after you mentioned the hidden files
and this also seems to work fine except Guide Plus+ doesn't work for some
reason.

Incidentally the jerkiness I saw with MMC 9.08 doesn't seem to be any
problem with my system. 9.08 is probably just a lousy version of MMC and/or
a bad combination of drivers. The stuttering was very slight and goes away
completely with the combinations of drivers/MMC above.

Richard
 
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